U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks to reporters during his meeting with Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S. June 20, 2017. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst

Reuters

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday the final agriculture bill that the U.S. Congress sends to him to sign into law should include work requirements for people receiving food stamps, the grocery subsidies officially called “SNAP.”

“#FarmBill with SNAP work requirements will bolster farmers and get America back to work. Pass the Farm Bill with SNAP work requirements!” Trump tweeted, as the two chambers of Congress begin reconciling separate bills that they recently passed into a single piece of legislation for him to sign.

A large bicameral committee will meet on Wednesday to begin negotiating the final bill, with the hope of completing its work before the current law expires on Sept. 30.

More than 40 million eligible, low-income Americans use SNAP, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, to subsidize their groceries. Authorization for SNAP funding is included in the sweeping agriculture bill that also covers crop subsidies, rural development, and conservation.

The House of Representatives has passed a farm bill that would expand the work requirements for those receiving SNAP and limit governors’ ability to waive the requirements, while the Senate version made minor changes, such as extending job training programs.

Reuters

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